Indoor Obstacle Course Ideas for Kids

Obstacle courses are super fun to build and are a great way to develop gross motor skills and burn off energy when it’s not good weather for outdoor activities. Here are our best indoor obstacle course ideas for kids!

Whether it’s super hot, cold, or raining and you are looking for an indoor summer activity, or you are just trying to mix up your playroom time, an indoor obstacle course is always a big hit with kids!

The best part of an obstacle course is working with what you have and making it silly and different.

Remember: the point is to laugh, have fun, and if you have multiple older kids, a little friendly competition.

If you have a Nugget kid’s couch, be sure to check out our Nugget obstacle course ideas!

Building it is half the fun

Get your kids involved in building and designing the course! This is especially great if you have older and younger siblings playing together. Kids love building things and testing them out!

Always be safe

Of course, your kids are excited to do a fun obstacle course. However, you need to be sure everyone is safe. Always supervise kids while playing – even from a short distance – and be ready to jump in if needed.

Obstacle course ideas for kids

Here are some of our favorite elements to include in an indoor obstacle course for kids!

Things to go under

Crawling is a fun part of any obstacle course! You could climb under chairs, through a collapsable tunnel, or under a table. You can even specify things like army crawl or crab walk for older kids!

Things to climb over

Climbing up and over things is a lot of fun, too. We love to use our Nugget to make ramps, or use our pikler triangle.

You could use something as simple as an upside down laundry basket to create a big step to step up!

Slide down

Having something to slide down from the top of a bed or couch is fun, too. Set up anything smooth into a ramp and slide on down it.

Throw something at a target

This could be bean bag toss, basket ball and a hoop, or throwing a ball into a basket or bin. Make it super easy for smaller kids and make older kids get a few in a row to move on!

Balance on something

Make your kids walk the plank! You can use an official balance beam, but we usually fold a blanket into a long line on the floor and walk across that! You could also use a jump rope or any rope to draw a line.

Pool noodles can be laid out to use as balance beams (on carpet) or to jump over or mark a starting line!

Jump from spot to spot

Kids love jumping and stepping over the “lava”! We have plastic stepping stones, but you can also jump in and out of a hula hoop, or use paper or painters tape to mark X’s on the floor.

Just be sure it’s nothing that will slide if stepped on (don’t use books on carpet – we learned that the hard way – ouch!)

Dodge something

If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball. But, probably don’t throw wrenches at your kids.

This could involve throwing something light (balloons maybe), blasting them with foam darts, or even stringing up crepe streamers to crawl around without tearing.

Stop and do an activity

Set a spot to FREEZE and do a fun activity. Jumping jacks, spin in a circle, jump in place five times, whatever is fun and funny for your aged kids!

Sing or speak

Pick another spot to stop and say something! Could mean sing Twinkle Twinkle, could be recite the alphabet with your tongue sticking out! The main goal with this is to make them rush and laugh!

Set a timer

For older kids, set a timer and make it a race to make it more fun and encourage them to want to do it over and over again!

Give it a theme

Another fun way to make obstacle courses special is to give them a theme. This could be for a birthday party, holiday, or just for fun.

For example, for Valentine’s day I cut big hearts out of paper and put one on each obstacle. My son loved collecting the hearts. It was simple but made it extra special!

Any other indoor obstacle course ideas?

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